


The missing princess

by One_Lone_Witch



Category: Original Work
Genre: Forgotten Past, Gen, Kidnapping, Royalty
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-12-08
Updated: 2021-02-03
Packaged: 2021-03-10 00:34:30
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 20
Words: 20,075
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/27955478
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/One_Lone_Witch/pseuds/One_Lone_Witch
Summary: Em doesn't think herself special, sure she's had a hard life so far but everyone has that. When one day the queen visits her mistress, her world turns upside down. And as she finds out, the more important you are, the more dangerous the rest of the world is.
Kudos: 1





	1. Chapter 1

A huge garden, that's the first thing I remember from my childhood. A huge garden filled with flowers and two little kids playing together, a boy and a girl. The boy has green eyes and short, blond hair, while the girl has purple eyes and golden hair. They're chasing each other, running past all kinds of roses, in a game of tag. They seem so happy and carefree, but as I watch, the sight seems to go blurry like a pool when a rock is thrown in the water. The girl looks up at me and, with pleading eyes, she says:  _ "Remember it." _

That is when I wake up.


	2. Chapter 2

I sit up straight in my bed, covered in sweat. I don't know why I keep dreaming about that garden, those kids. Neither do I know why this is the only thing I remember about my life before I turned seven. It's like a black hole in my brain wiped all my old memories away.

Slowly my heart rate slows down again and I step out of bed towards my little bathroom. Seeing as I’m already later than normal, I quickly take off my nightgown and turn on the shower. I shower as fast as I can and when I'm done I return to my room, putting on a black dress with black tights. I put my dark brown hair in a ponytail, but as I look in the mirror and look at my hair, I can see the golden color coming through.  _ 'I really need to dye my hair again,' _ I think to myself.

Mentally adding that to my never-ending 'to-do'-list, I reach into my dresser and take out a small box. This is always my least favorite moment of the day but as Madam says,  _ 'as long as it helps me to stay hidden from people who want to hurt me, the pain is a needed evil.' _ I open the box and take out two colored lenses. They're green, the color of newly grown grass, my favorite. Putting the lenses in my eyes still hurts, even though I've had two whole years to master the skill. After putting the lenses in place I take a last look in the mirror, happy with the result.

Quickly and as silently as I can, I walk out of my room and to the kitchen where I fill a kettle with water. After having put it on the heater I start making sandwiches. Two for Madam, one with bacon and one with egg, just how she likes it. I take a serving tray out of one of the drawers and put the sandwiches in the middle, then I pick up a silver and gold embroidered cup, putting it next to the sandwiches as well as a crystal glass which I fill with apple juice. As the kettle starts whistling I take it off of the heater and put some herbs in it. After having put it on the serving tray behind the cup I pick up the tray and start walking through the manor towards Madam's bedroom.

As I reach the door leading to Madam's bedroom, I shift the tray to my left hand, while I knock on her door with my right.

"Come in," I hear her say.

Quickly I open the door and walk in. "Good morning, Madam. How are you feeling today?" I ask, putting the tray on her lap. Her beautiful black hair with white streaks falls in waves over her shoulders while her grey-blue eyes study me while I open the curtains.

"I am fine, Em. Thank you for asking." She picks up the kettle and starts pouring tea in her cup.

"Madam, I was wondering if I could go to the store today. We need more groceries and I also need new hair dye, so-" Madam raises her hand, shushing me.

"I forgot to tell you, we have company this afternoon, the queen decided to visit us, so I need you here. You can ask that friend of yours to get the groceries."

I stand looking at Madam, very aware I'm gawking at her with my mouth open, but unable to do anything else. After what feels like an hour but is in fact just a few seconds I succeed in closing my mouth,  before practically squeaking out , "The queen? W-why would she come h-here?"

"I have no idea," Madam says, looking unaffected by the news. "That is why I need you to clean the mansion from top to bottom before she arrives with princess Persephone."

"P-princess Persephone is c-coming too?" I ask, my palms starting to sweat.

"Yes, so you had better begin cleaning right now if you want to be done on time."

"Yes Madam," I say, bowing respectfully. "I will be back in an hour to collect the tray." After having said this, I turn around walking to the supply closet.  _ 'Oh. My. Gods. The queen is coming to see Madam.' _ I can hardly keep the excitement contained as I start cleaning.


	3. Chapter 3

As I'm cleaning, I start humming. It's always the same song, especially when I'm happy. Madame never likes it if I hum, she says it distracts her. That's why I only hum when she isn't around.

I keep trying to focus on the job at hand but I can feel my mind wandering off, so I decide to take a break. Sitting down, I think of this afternoon and what it would be like, seeing the queen and crown-princess for the first time. What do they look like in real life? Are they really as nice as everyone says? While I'm thinking another thought hits me.  _ 'I still have to ask Drew to do the groceries.' _

I jump up too fast, almost making me fall down again, but at the last moment, I grab onto a drawer, steadying myself. I take a few seconds until the dizziness has passed and start to walk downstairs. Once downstairs, I walk outside into the garden and start heading towards the stables. 

It's a huge building almost half as big as the mansion. It's also one of my most favorite places in- and outside of the mansion, together with my room. 

As I walk towards the backdoor of the stables, I can already hear Drew talking to the horses.

"Hello beautiful, how are you today?" I hear him whisper.

As I walk through the door I say, "Are you talking to yourself again?"

As I'd predicted Drew is standing with a beautiful brown mare, talking while he brushes her. He turns around quickly, his brown curly hair as messy as ever and a playful look in his sapphire blue eyes. "You know me so well," he says, laughing. "How're you, Em?"

"I'm great," I say, hardly containing my excitement. "How about you?"

"I'm fine, but what got you all excited?"

"Before I tell you, I need to ask you something."

"Ask away."

"Can you do the groceries today?"

"Why can't you do it?"

"Madame needs me today."

"To do what?"

I look around, looking for anyone who might listen to our conversation. I see no one but I still take a few steps closer to Drew. "I'm going to tell you something that you can't tell anyone else, okay?" 

Drew looks suspiciously at me but nods. "Okay."

I take a deep breath and say, "The queen and crown-princess are coming today. That's why I have to stay here, to make sure everything is perfect for when they arrive."

Drew just stares at me for a moment before starting to laugh. "You almost had me there, Em. You really are a good actress, I almost believed you. The queen and crown-princess, here? How did you come up with that? Look, if you don't want to do the groceries just tell me, okay."

All I can do is just stare at him. Slowly, he stops laughing when he sees I'm not laughing along. "It  _ is _ a joke, right?" He asks, his face getting pale. "They're not really coming, right?"

I try to talk but all that comes out is a little peep, so I swallow and try again, "I only know what Madame told me, and she said that they were coming here this afternoon." Drew sits down on a crate quickly and runs a hand through his hair. "Oh my gods. Why? I mean, Madame is a nice person and all but she's not really important or anything. And they are probably very busy people so why come here?"

"I really don't know that much, Drew. All I know is that the queen and princess come here in the afternoon and I have to stay here to make sure everything is ready for when they arrive. That's all. And talking about getting ready, I have to go back so I can clean the rest of the mansion. So can you do the groceries for me or not?"

Drew takes a deep breath and stands up. "Yeah, I can do that. I just need to know what you need."

I smile. "Give me a pen and some paper and I'll make you a list. And please be as quick as possible, because I really need this stuff."

Drew walks away into a room and comes back a few minutes later with the things I asked for. It takes a few minutes to write everything down and after that, I give the paper back to Drew. "This is everything I need."

Drew seems hesitant, "Hey Em, ehm do you think I can take one of the horses to get the groceries?"

I look at him for a moment before I reply, "I don't think Madame would mind, I mean if I can, why can't you?"

"But you are like a daughter to Madame, I'm just the stable boy."

"I don't think so Drew, I think Madame cares for all of us very dearly."

"Maybe, but I'm just not sure-"

I place my hand on his shoulder and, with a little smile, say, "Just take a horse with you, she won't mind, I promise."

Drew sighs and turns around, back to the brown mare. "Are you in for a little ride, Beautiful?"

The mare snorts and Drew laughs. "I thought so." He turns to me and says, "I'll be back in an hour. Where would you like me to put the groceries when I get back?"

"In the kitchen would be best. Thank you." I kiss him on the cheek before leaving the stables and walking back to the mansion again. That's one thing to cross off my list, just a million more to go.


	4. Chapter 4

Back inside the mansion, I walk back to the attic to start cleaning again. But as I walk around a corner I walk into Madame.

"I'm sorry," I immediately say.

"It's quite alright, Em. But I thought you were cleaning upstairs?"

"I was but I hadn't asked Drew to get the groceries yet, so I thought I'd go and ask before our guests arrive."

"That is very thoughtful of you."

"Now if you'll excuse me, I still need to clean the whole mansion." I start walking but Madame stops me by holding up her hand.

"Maybe you could get that serving tray back to the kitchen before you start cleaning again. You know, before you forget." A hint of a smile flashes on Madame's lips.

I smile back. "Of course I can." 

As fast as I can, I turn around and start walking towards Madame's chambers. And there lying on the bed, right where I left it, is the serving tray. I pick it up and start walking to the kitchen. As I round the corner leading to the kitchen I walk into what feels like a wall with clothes. I take a step back and look up slightly. A man in what looks like a fancy suit looks down at me. His black eyes are looking weirdly familiar, though I don't know how.

"I'm sorry," I say quickly when I realize all I've been doing is stare up at him with what I assume is a funny facial expression, from the amusing smile on his face. "Can I help you with something?"

"No need to say sorry, lassie," the man says with a funny accent. "I was just lookin' for duchess Biousy. Do ye know where I can fin' 'er?"

I think for a minute before I answer. "If you're looking for Madame you're totally in the wrong place. She would never go to the kitchen. It's no place for a lady of her standards."

The man looks at me with a questioning look in his eyes. "Madame?"

"Yes, Madame. As in Duchess Helga Olivia Bioux. She is who you are looking for, right?"

"Aye, can ye tell me where she is?"

"At a time like this, she's probably in the gardens. I can bring you to her if you like."

"'At would be much appreciated."

I walk into the kitchen and put down the tray. As I turn back to him, I say, "Well, follow me then."

I open the back door which comes out into a beautiful garden full of roses. "I'm Em, by the way."

"I’m Shamus."

"Nice to meet you, Shamus. But tell me, why are you here, actually? I've never seen you before and I know almost everyone that passes by this mansion."

"I’m here to make sure everything's in order for th' queen. Tell me somethin', are there any more servants here or is it just ye?"

"First of all, are you really working for the royal family?! Wow. Second, there are a few more servants, if that's what you want to call them. First, there's Drew, he’s a stable boy, but he isn't here at the moment. Then there's Margret, she comes here once a month to help me with a thorough cleaning of the mansion. And last, there's Marco, he also comes once a month to tend to the gardens and lawns. And of course, there's me."

"That's all? Just four folk to look after a mansion as big as this?"

"You seem surprised. You don't believe we can keep this place clean with so few? You don't think I can keep it clean?" I stand still and turn around, hands on my hips.

"Don’t get yer panties in a bunch. I didn’t mean to offend ye. Don’t listen to what I have to say." He smiles at me, his eyes seem to sparkle in the sunlight and I feel myself relax.

"We're almost there," I say, turning around, so I don't have to look into his eyes. After a few more turns we enter a pavilion. In the middle, a little bench stands. Madame sits on it, looking over a sea of roses, growing all around the pavilion. I clear my throat before entering the pavilion so she knows I'm here.

"Madame, there's someone here to see you."

She stands up and turns around, looking at Shamus. "You must be sir McGregor. I was told you'd come."

Shamus takes a step forward. "Ye can call me Shamus."

"Well, mister Shamus, what can I help you with? If you need any information whatsoever just ask me."

"I think I have everythin' I need. From what I have seen, this looks like a safe place for th' queen an' princess to come."

"That's great news," I say before I can stop myself. Quickly I slap a hand over my mouth.

Shamus just smiles and says, "It is indeed."

I slowly lower my hand and smile back. "Em, are you already done cleaning everything?" Madame asks suddenly.

"No, sorry," I say, mentally shaking myself. “I’ll get right to it, Madame.”

"I have to go as well. I have to go back to th' palace." 

"I'll show you out if you want," I tell him.

"That'd be much appreciated." He tells me. Turning back to Madame he says, “I hope to see ye again soon."

Together we walk back to the mansion.


	5. Chapter 5

"So that's th' duchess," Shamus says after a while.

I know it's not a question but I still reply. "Yes, that's Madame or the duchess as you call her."

"I have been wantin' to ask ye, why do ye call her Madam?"

I take a moment to think before I reply. "I... don't really know. I think it's just because it feels like the right thing to say. I've been calling Madame like that since the first time I met her."

"How did ye meet exactly?"

"Well, I think it was two years ago when she found me. I had some... problems and she helped me, she made sure they didn't bother me anymore. Madame took me in, she treats me like her daughter and I've been trying to make it up to her ever since."

"She sounds like a fascinatin' woman."

"She really is. But how about the queen, what is she like?"

We stop walking and just stare at the flowers. "She's th' most beautiful woman there is. She's kin', carin' an' always does what she thinks best. In one word, she's feisty." Shamus looks at the sky, shielding his eyes from the sun. "It's almost noon, if th' queen wants to visit this place the-day, I have to go now." He starts walking again.

As I turn around I see a lone rose lying on the path.  _ 'The poor thing broke off.'  _ I pick it up and run to catch up to Shamus. We walk back through the mansion and onto the lawn where a coach stands, four black stallions in front of it.

"They're beautiful," I whisper, almost afraid that they might disappear if I talk too loudly.

"They're 'er majesty's royal steeds. They truly are magnificent, aren’t they?" As he starts walking towards the coach, I run after him. 

"Shamus!" He turns around as I reach him, holding up the rose which I now see is white as freshly-fallen snow. "Would you give this to the queen, as a token of appreciation for bestowing such a great honor on Madame?"

"I can do 'at," he says with a smile. I watch him get into the coach and keep waving until I lose sight of him.

The next few hours, I spend cleaning. As the only live-in maid, I became quite skilled at cleaning the whole house in as little time as possible. So, by the time the bell rings, the only chambers I haven't cleaned yet are the servants’ chambers and halls; and the kitchen which are areas the queen and princess won’t be visiting anyway. Before I open the door, I put all cleaning tools away and wash my hands, wiping them on my apron.

The first thing I see as I open the door is Shamus. He smiles warmly at me before stepping aside, showing a beautiful woman dressed in a deep red dress, the body lined with rubies. Her kind blue-purple eyes sparkle and her deep red lips are curved in a radiant smile. Her sand-colored hair shows strings of white. Next to her a girl stands, her dress is blue, the body lined with sapphires which match her blue eyes perfectly. Her hair, almost golden in the light, seems to wave in a breeze only she can feel. She kinda reminds me of the little girl from my dream, but how can I dream about a princess? Shamus brings me back to reality by saying, "Let me introduce, Clarissa, queen of Alemea, an' 'er daughter Persephone, crown princess of Alemea."

I mentally shake myself.  _ 'Don't blow this, you don't want to disappoint Madame, do you?' _ I quickly curtsy, "Come in, your majesties. Welcome to the Bioux residence. Madame is waiting for you in the sunroom."

"Lead the way," the queen says. I close the door and lead them through the mansion, while telling them all about its history. Too soon we reach the doors leading into the sunroom. I knock three times. "Come in," Madame calls. I open the doors and step inside, letting the queen and princess pass.

"Queen Clarissa, what a pleasure to see you. And you must be princess Persephone, welcome to my humble home," Madame says, sending them a respectful nod. She looks at me and says, "Thank you for bringing them here, Em. Now will you be so kind as to bring tea? After that, you can go to your room. If there is any need for you we shall ring."

"Yes, Madame," is all I say before I curtsy and leave the room. I quickly walk towards the kitchen, glad to get away from there. 

So that's what the queen is like. She's so much different from what I had initially thought. And the princess, she's so pretty, but she seems uneasy being here. As if she's afraid of something.

I enter the kitchen and quickly put the kettle on the stove while I take out a cake which I made only this morning. After having cut the cake, I place it on a serving tray next to the fanciest cups we have. In the meantime, the kettle has started whistling and quickly I take it off of the stove. Quickly, I add some tea leaves to the boiling water before picking up the tray and making my way back to the sunroom.

Once there, I knock on the door before opening it and walk in. As quietly as I can, I put down the tray and start placing the cups and cake in front of the three ladies. After I put down the teapot, I walk towards the doors only to turn around, waiting to be dismissed. As Madame gives me the sign, I curtsy once more before leaving. Once in the hall, I have to try very hard not to run all the way to my room. Who knew it could be so nerve-wrecking to have a guest like the queen?


	6. Chapter 6

I walk through the kitchen and through a door leading to the servant corridor. At the end of which is my room. Once in the corridor, I run the last few meters, I can't help it. I want to get to my safe place. I don't know why the queen's presence has affected me so much, but I don't have to know.

I open my door and run in. I only stop running when I reach my bed and sit heavily on it, afraid my legs will fall out from underneath me. I quickly take out my lenses as they are really hurting my eyes.

"So is this your room?" I hear a petite voice say. I turn around, seeing a shadow near my door.

"Who are you?" I ask alarmed.

"Relax, it's only me," the voice says, and coming through the door is none other than princess Persephone.

"'Only you'? You're the princess, I don't think many people would call that 'only you'. More like Her Royal Highness or something," I say before I can stop myself. "But where are my manners?" I stand up ready to curtsy, again, but she rushes towards me and puts a hand on my shoulder.

"You don't have to do that every time, you know?" she says with an amused smile.

"Phew, good to know," I sigh. I point at a chair near my bed. "Please sit, your majesty."

She giggles, "You don't have to call me that either. Just call me Persephone or Seph, that's good enough."

I smile back saying, "I'd like that, but Madame would have my head if I did that."

"And what if I order you to call me that?"

I think about it for a second. "I guess an order from a princess tops an order given by Madame, right?"

We both laugh. "So, ehm, Persephone, why did you... follow me? I mean that's the only way you would know where to find my room."

"These kinds of things are boring," she says matter-of-factly. "The duchess gave me permission to look around the mansion, so I thought I'd see what you are doing when you're not serving tea and all."

"Well, as you can see, not much."

"Can I ask you something?"

"Go right ahead."

"What does your family think about you being here all alone?"

I’m taken aback by her sudden question. "Well, you see, I, ehm, I don't really have a family."

Persephone looks at me with sudden interest. "What do you mean?"

I don't know what makes me open up to her but suddenly I hear myself tell her my story. "I don't remember anything from before I was seven, it's like my memories just vanished one day. So I don't know if I have a family to begin with. All I know is that I worked in some kind of workhouse for women before Madame found me and took me in."

"That seems horrible. Not being able to remember your past and working in such an awful place."

"It really was," I say, trying not to think too hard about it. I try putting on a brave smile and continue, "But now that's all in the past. Now I live with Madame and she treats me really well. She's even going to find me a husband when I come off age."

"Off age? How old are you now?"

"I'm seventeen, I'll be eighteen in two months."

Suddenly she looks at me like I just grew two more heads. "What? Did I say anything wrong?" I ask her.

Quickly she looks at her hands. "You know, you are exactly the same age my sister would've been right now."

"Your sister?" I think quickly, I never knew there were two princesses and how can Persephone be the crown princess when she has an older sister? "I never knew you had a sister."

"Not many remember her. She was kidnapped ten years ago, I was just five years old. I don't even remember her but some servants tell me I look like her."

"I'm sorry, was she ever found?"

"No, some say she's long dead, but I don't believe that and neither does my mother. That's... actually why we're here. For my sister." She looks me straight in the eyes. "My sister has golden hair, a voice like an angel and bright purple eyes. The exact same shade as your eyes are."

I quickly look away. "What do you mean? These are just lenses."

"It's not wise to lie to a princess," Persephone says in a stern voice. "I just saw you take some lenses out of your eyes. Please don't go making up stories, they can only come back to haunt you and something tells me you've been haunted enough."

I sigh. "So what if I have purple eyes, I've seen more than a few others who had the same eye color. Why would that make me special?"

"Because you're Gemma Estella Clarissa, crown princess of Alemea and rightful heir to the throne."


	7. Chapter 7

All I can do is stare at Persephone as I try to take in what she just told me. "You're kidding me right?" I finally manage to say.

"Why would I?" she asks me in return.

I stand up and start pacing to fight back the stress coursing through my veins. "What do you mean 'why would I'? Look at me. Do I look like a princess to you? And another thing, you said your sister's hair was golden. Well, mine's brown, so that doesn't look alike one bit. And just because she went missing in the year I lost my memories doesn't mean I'm the missing princess you're looking for, okay."

A loud thud startles us both, as we both turn towards the sound. There in the doorway is Drew, a little package down by his feet.

"Drew, what are you doing here?" I ask, walking towards him. "Weren't you supposed to do the groceries?"

Quickly he looks down and picks up the package. "Hey to you too, Em. And yeah, I was getting the groceries and now I'm back. I also saw something while I was doing the groceries and I thought you might like it." He says handing me the package. "I hope you don't mind me getting you a present."

"O-of course not," I say, in a light stage of shock. "Thank you." I start unwrapping the package and open the little box that is in it. Inside the box lies a small necklace with a little topaz stone dangling in the middle. I boast a smile his way and hug him tightly. "Thank you so much, Drew. I love it."

"That's so cute," Persephone says from her place in the chair. I sort of forgot about her when Drew gave me the gift so remembering she's here I let go of Drew swiftly and turn to Persephone. 

"We'll talk later, right now I suggest you go back to your mother and Madame before you are missed."

Drew being the nosy person he is walks towards Persephone and says, "it seems we haven't met yet. My name is Andrew, but you can call me Drew, everyone does."

"Nice to meet you, Drew, I am Persephone," she says with a smile, while Drew's face turns white. "But if you want you can call me Seph."

"You-you're the princess, aren't you?" Drew asks and as Persephone nods he quickly bows. "I am so sorry, your majesty, I didn't know you were the princess if I had known-"

"Easy, easy," Persephone says jumping out of the chair. "It's okay, I promise. And please, just call me Persephone, your majesty sound so formal." She pulls Drew up until he stands straight once again. "You couldn't have known I was here, for all you knew I was an old friend of Em's."

"That seems a bit hard to believe," Drew says, trying to hide a smile.

"And why's that?" I ask, stepping in hitting distance of Drew. If he doesn't choose his next words carefully he will end up with a black eye and he knows I make good on my promises.

"Well," he starts, clearly at a loss of words. "You see, you, you don't have many friends. Apart from me, I’d say you have none, at least none that dress as good as Persephone here."

I study him for a moment, he seems content with the answer he gave and I can't just smack him on the head without reason even though I feel like it. So I sigh and take a step back, as Drew releases his breath. "You're lucky you're my friend."

He smiles mischievous, and I can't help but smile back. "And don't I know it." His smile disappears, replaced by little wrinkles. "What exactly were you two talking about here, if I may ask?"

I look at Persephone with a look that says  _ 'if you tell him, I will kill you' _ , but she either doesn't see it or doesn't respond to it. Instead, she starts telling Drew everything she just told me.

"The only difference between them," she concludes. "Is their hair color. My sister's hair color is golden but Em's hair color is brown. It just doesn't match."

Drew looks at me with a hint of wonder in his eyes. "Haven't you told her?" he asks me.

"Told me what?" Persephone says, trying, and failing, to keep the excitement out of her voice.

Drew looks her in the eyes as he says, "Em dyes her hair. She has been doing it for some time now. Now I think about it she's been doing so for as long as I know her."

Now the excitement is clearly audible when Persephone directs her next question to me. "Please tell me, honestly, what is your hair color?"

I feel a lump forming in my throat, making it hard to swallow. I look over at Drew looking for some sign of support, but he looks as excited as Persephone, so I take a deep breath and say, "Last time I checked my own hair color was golden." 

"We have to tell mother," Persephone says, already on her way back to her mother, ready to ruin my whole life just like that.

"No," I hear myself say with a tone I never heard myself use before. I take another breath and start over. "No, Persephone, you can't. No matter what kind of proof you think you have or what you think, I. Am. Not. Your. Sister. I just can't be. Like I said before, I'm not princess material. I'm not like you."

"You can be," Persephone says, tears welling in her eyes. "You can be like me. All you need is a bit of training and someone who supports you, someone who believes in you. That's all."

"But that's not the problem, Seph," I say, not noticing I use the short version of her name. "The problem is that  _ I _ don't believe in myself." Tears are now also welling up in my eyes, so I push myself past Persephone and Drew and make my way to the kitchen.

"Em," I hear Drew call after me. I hear him running towards me but don't quicken my pace. Soon enough he caught up to me. "Em, what are you doing?"

"What am I doing?! Don't you mean what is she doing, thinking I'm some long lost princess?"

Drew grabs my arm pulling me to a halt. "But what if she's right? What if you  _ are _ the princess. My mom once told me the story of the missing princess. They say the princess was the sweetest there was, not only on the outside but also on the inside, everyone loved her. Then one day she went outside in the gardens to play with her best friend, but as later that day the boy was found unconscious in the grass with a hole in his head, the princess was never seen or heard from again."

"So what? That probably means she died a long time ago."

"But what if she didn't, Em. What if she was sent to a workhouse where she lost her memories because of the trauma. And what if she got saved by a nice lady who took her in and cared for her. What if she now works as this lady's maid. The least you can do is doing the princess a favor by going along with it and if she's wrong you still don't lose anything because you just wanted to help the princess."

"That's just the problem. I don't want to get her hopes up to see them destroyed again."

"You won't," Persephone says suddenly. I turn back to look at the girl, just fifteen and already so strong. Looking at her standing there, so fearless and looking way older than fifteen, I make my choice.

I take one last breath. "Okay, if you're so sure. Let your mother decide who I am."


	8. Chapter 8

Walking back to the sunroom seems like the scariest thing I've ever done. My fingers move frantically, playing with my skirt. I have to remind myself that a lady isn't supposed to act like that and reluctantly I let go of my skirt, moving my hands to my sides.

Persephone is in front of me practically dancing. "Come on!" she calls out, looking back at me and Drew. "We've got to tell mother. She will be so happy." 

"I still don't know if this is a good idea," I whisper to Drew. "Are you sure this is the right thing to do?"

Drew grabs my hand and squeezes it. "I'm positive. Just imagine, you, a princess. You could get away from this all and be on the other side of things for once."

"But who says I want that?"

"I do. I mean, if you're really the princess, you could make life better for all servants in this country and maybe even the whole world! Just think about it. You could help so many people, even more than you already do. And you would have the full support of the townspeople, I just know it."

"Like that is a big help."

We round the last corner leading to the sunroom as I stop walking.

"I can't do this," I say loud enough for Persephone to hear. "I really can't."

She turns around, saying, "Of course you can do this. We'll be with you the whole time and I'll do the talking. All you have to do is tell mother what you've just told me, that's it." She knocks on the door before entering. Both women look up and as we walk in I think I see a shadow of a smile pass over the queen's face. I squeeze Drew's hand, hard.

"Mother I think the woman was right," Persephone says as she stands beside me, shoving me closer to the queen.

"What do you mean 'the woman was right'?" I ask her, turning around.

"A woman from the village came to the castle a few days ago saying she'd seen the lost princess in her village. She told us of a girl who looked like an older version of the princess only with brown hair, who always buys colored lenses from her every few weeks. She said the girl was supposedly a maid working for some duchess living on the edge of the town. Most people at the castle thought she was just making things up, but mother and me, we wanted to investigate for ourselves. And now here we are, with you."

"Lady Tragale," I mutter, remembering the old woman who I always go to for my lenses. "Why am I not surprised she came up with a story like that?"

"If lady Tragale is your source you can count yourselves lucky it wasn't a pretty story," Drew says. "She is known as a kind, but terribly unstable woman. She's what we call a Lost Brain, in the past she was a very wise woman but now all she does is call out nonsense."

"This-this can't be true," Madame mutters, her eyes darting from the queen to me and Persephone, and back again. "Your majesty, you can't believe anything a Lost Brain says, all they ever tell are stories, stories that never really happen."

"Well, sometimes even the most scatterbrained person can tell words of truth," the queen says calmly, standing up. "Come here, my child. I would like to look at you myself before I go and make assumptions."

Slowly I walk towards the queen. 

"Tell me, what is your name, child?" She asks me as she walks around me, looking me up and down. While she holds up my chin, moving my head in different directions I say, "My name is Em, your majesty." She closely studies my hair, also taking a good look at the roots, the golden color lighting up in the sun. Lastly, she pulls down my left sleeve studying my left shoulder blade. She probably finds what she's looking for because she calls out in triumph.

She walks back to her former spot right in front of me. "Do you know you have a little heart-like birthmark on your shoulder blade?"

I hear Persephone catch her breath. "No your majesty, I didn't. Why did you want to know, if I might ask? Is it important somehow?"

The queen's smile seems to light up the whole room. "That birthmark only exists in the royal family. Having that birthmark proves that you are, in fact, my daughter."

Shocked I take a step back and at the moment I feel like my legs are going to give out under me, I feel two hands holding me up, pulling me into a chair. I look up seeing Drew's shocked face stare back at me. "Thanks," I say. I try to say more but the lump in my throat is back with a vengeance, making it impossible to say anything else. 

He nods once before walking away, out of the room.  _ 'Wait _ ', I want to scream at him, but it seems I can't do anything more than look at my hands without actually seeing them.

"Em?" I hear someone say, from somewhere far away. "Are you alright?"

I try shaking my head, but before I can my eyes start closing and I slide off of my chair into a welcome sleepless dream.


	9. Chapter 9

As I open my eyes, I stare up into someone’s eyes. Not knowing what else to do I scream. Quickly the person covers my mouth.

"Relax, it's just me," the person says.

As my vision clears, the person comes into view. "I don't think it's just you," I say, my voice hoarse because of the screaming, to Persephone. I look around and see that I'm back in my room. How did I get here? I have no idea.

"How are you feeling?"

"I don't know. What happened?" I sit up slowly and Persephone hands me a glass of water, which I drain before she even has time to sit down next to my bed.

"What's the last thing you can remember?"

"We were going to your mother because you thought I was your long lost sister and then-"

"What's wrong? Is everything okay?!" the queen shouts as she runs into my room closely followed by Shamus.

As she lays eyes on me, she smiles and says, "It's a good thing you woke up."

"Ye got us worried there fur a sec, lassie," Shamus says, from his place near the door.

I smile. "I'm fine, really. I just have a hard time remembering how I got here. That's all."

"So you don't remember what happened after you came back to the sunroom?" the queen asks.

"I vaguely remember you asking me some questions and, well, examining me but what happened next is still a little foggy."

"That's okay," Persephone says. "We can just tell you what happened and after that, you can come with us!"

The queen walks over to Persephone and says, "Maybe we should give your sister the time to get used to the idea first, before deciding what our next step is."

"Whoa, wait a minute," I say, making everyone stop with what they are doing to stare at me. "You mean to say that all that 'you're my sister' stuff is actually true?"

"Of course, it is, silly," Persephone says before her mother can stop her. "When I say something it is the truth. It always is."

I smile, I can't help it, the way she said that is just so adorable. "That may be what you think, Persephone," I say, swinging my legs over the edge of my bed. I try to stand up but as the room seems to start spinning as I do, I decide to sit back down.

"Are you feeling alright?" the queen asks, clearly concerned.

"I'm fine, just a little light-headed, that's all. It will pass soon enough."

"Em?" Persephone says, sitting down next to me. "Will you come back with us to the palace? Will you come back home?"

'Home', it sounds so normal when she says it, but isn't this my home? Here where I'm with Madame and Drew. I look at Persephone and she looks back, a pleading look in her eyes.

An image flashes before my eyes, a little girl, her huge blue eyes locked with mine, a pleading look in them.

As fast as the image comes, it's gone. But it was long enough for me to make a decision.

"I would love to see the castle, but I don't know if I'm ready to stay there yet."

"I think it's a good idea for you to just stay for a few days, just to look around, and see for yourself if you are ready to stay with us. Does that sound like an idea?" the queen says, sitting down at my other side.

"That sounds like a great plan," I say with a smile.

"Great, do you have anything to take with you?"

In a few minutes, everything I own is packed and ready to go. I walk to the carriage together with Persephone and the queen, who I suppose I should be calling Mother now. As we approach the carriage, Drew comes walking towards me. Shamus, the protective guy he is, steps forward, ready to catch Drew before he can get to us.

Gently I place a hand on his arm. "It's okay, he's my friend." Looking back at the queen I ask, "May I have a minute? To say goodbye for now."

"Take as long as you need," she says as she and Persephone get inside the carriage.

I walk towards Drew. "Hey, you."

"Hey."

"Are you okay? What's the matter?"

"Well, you're a princess now. That means you're even more out of my league than before."

"What do you mean?"

"Don't act like you don't know," Drew says, turning away.

"Drew," I say quietly, turning him back around. "Please tell me what's on your mind. I really don't know what you're talking about."

As he looks into my eyes, I see tears in his. "Em, I-I like you, I have for a while now. I-I thought you knew."

I look at him, not knowing what to say. "I'm sorry, Drew. I didn't know. I always thought you just saw me as a friend."

"Em, are you coming?!" Persephone yells from inside the carriage.

"I guess I have to go," I say reluctantly, as tears well up in my eyes.

"I guess so."

I give him one last kiss on his forehead before I turn away and say, "I like you too." 

I run towards the carriage and get in as quickly as possible, trying to prepare myself for my new life. 


	10. Chapter 10

Driving through the village, I make sure no one sees me. I don't want them to go around making up stories about why I'm going to the palace.

"Are you excited to go home again?" Persephone asks, bouncing on the seat next to me.

"To be honest, I don't know how to feel about it," I say looking at my hands. "I mean, I still feel like I'm betraying Madame by coming with you."

"What do you mean?"

"Madame has been caring for me for two years now, even if it doesn't seem that way. She made sure I had a place to call home, and she got me out of trouble. I owe a lot to her and now I feel like I just turned my back to her when something better came along."

"But that's not true. You just have a higher calling now."

"I know, but that doesn't change the way I feel."

I feel the carriage slowing down and soon we stop at the biggest building I've ever seen in my life. Before I can reach the door someone opens it from the outside. "My lady," the man says as he holds up his hand.

"Watch me," Persephone tells me before taking his hand with her left hand and holding up her skirt with her right. As she steps out of the carriage and out in the open she says, "that's how it's done. Now you do it."

Hesitantly, I stand up and take the man's hand, though I don't take hold of my skirt. I try to step out as elegantly as possible but, of course, I trip over my own feet. Luckily for me, Shamus, who stands on the other side of the door, catches me before I can fall to the ground.

"Thanks," I mutter, feeling my head turn bright red.

Shamus just nods and a warm smile crosses his face before he puts me on the ground and helps the queen out of the carriage.

"That went well," I say sarcastically when I go to stand next to Persephone.

"You'll learn," she replies, though I can see she's trying really hard not to laugh.

"I hope so," I say, already feeling like a failure.

"It's not so bad," Persephone quickly says, obviously trying to make me feel better. "You know what, why don't I show you around the castle? It's not like you remember it, right?"

"Can we do that? Doesn't the queen need us for anything?"

"Of course we can and you can just call her mother you know. It's not a sin to call your mother, mother."

"I know, I just have to get used to it."

"Now, shall we go explore?"

Persephone first shows me the common rooms, like the dining room and ballroom.

"These are usually the places where guests come when mother organizes a party," she sums up as we walk through the castle. "Guests with a more personal matter used to go to the study with Father, but as you know he died a few months ago." A single tear flows down her cheek which she quickly brushes away. "Now, I'll show you your room," she says, trying to sound cheerful.

We walk through multiple corridors before ending up in front of two huge mahogany doors. Persephone pushes me forward and says, "go on, open it. It's your room after all."

I slowly walk towards the doors and turn the doorknob, trying to make the moment last as long as possible. Sadly, the door opens all on its own as soon as I touch the knob. I look into another corridor.

"Go on," Persephone says. "Go in." 

I take a step in, and then another. Glad to know nothing happens, I start walking, taking in my surroundings as I go. The walls are a beautiful light-blue while the floor and ceiling are both white. I walk further until I end up in a room with a giant bed inside, with a door on both sides of it.

"Wow," is all I can say. "Is  _ this _ my room?"

"Just wait until you see your closet," Persephone says, a mischievous grin spreading across her face as she points towards the door on the left side of my bed.

I walk towards it with Persephone close by and open it. Behind the door is a room filled with dresses and cloaks and all the kinds of jewelry you can possibly think of. All I can do is stare at the amount of stuff in the room.

"I've never seen this much clothing in one room in my life."

"You should get used to it then. This is your life now," Persephone says, looking around for something. "Ah, here it is," she says after a while. She walks towards a shelf, and I follow her. As she turns to me, she says, "Close your eyes."

Without a moment of doubt, I do as I'm told. I feel how Persephone works with my hair, first getting rid of the ponytail and then putting something on my head. After that, she leads me through the room. "You can look now," she says.

I open my eyes and what I see makes me forget how to breathe for a moment. She put me in front of a mirror, but the girl looking back at me doesn't look like me. Her purple eyes look too beautiful, too piercing. Her hair looks more golden than brown and on her head rests a beautiful crown with purple diamonds in it. I take a step forward. "Is that really me?"

"Of course it is. Now you see what I see when I look at you. You will be a perfect princess, I'm sure of it."

I take the crown off of my head and look at it. "Don't take this the wrong way, I really like the attention for once, but-"

"No buts, we're not done yet. You haven't seen the best thing yet, the secret gardens." Persephone takes the crown out of my hands, putting it back in its rightful place, before taking my hand and leading me out of my room.

"I think you will like the gardens very much, they're the most beautiful and peaceful place in the whole castle."

After a short walk, she opens a little wooden door. As she opens it, I can see sunlight coming through it and as quickly as possible I walk out. Outside, I see a huge garden full of roses. My head starts spinning again.  _ It's the garden from my dreams _ , my head screams.

"What's wrong?" Persephone asks.

"I-I think I remember this garden. I've been dreaming about it for as long as I can remember."

"How can that be?" Persephone asks, but I stop listening when I see a boy in the field. He seems busy taking care of the flowers, but that's not what got my attention. Somehow he seems familiar.

"Who's he?" I ask Persephone, who was ranting on about the impossibility for me to know this place as I forgot everything else. She looks at the guy and shrugs. "He's a servant. He's been here for a long time. That's all I know. He's not allowed to get near me and vise versa."

"That doesn't mean I can't." Before Persephone can stop me I start walking towards him. "Hey," I call out. "Can I ask you something?"

He looks up, his green eyes catching me by surprise. His hair grew longer and he's older, but he really is the boy from my dream. And then at that moment it finally hits me,  _ I am the missing princess! _


	11. Chapter 11

After a few minutes of silent staring the boy clears his throat and asks, "are you going to ask me something or are you going to stand there for the rest of the day?"

I shake my head, trying to shake away that crazy idea. I can't be a princess, no way in hell. "Yes, sorry. I ehm, wanted to ask if we've met before. You look familiar somehow."

Only now, do I see his broad chest and thick arms from working so much. His tanned skin is just the perfect color. His clothes compliment his athletic form perfectly. The boy looks at me for a few moments before shaking his head. "I don't think we've met before." He scratches his cheek which makes me giggle somehow. "I do agree that you seem familiar too. Where do you come from?"

"I came from there," I say, pointing my finger behind me at the door I came through.

"Ha ha," He says sarcastically, though he smiles. "I meant from which village are you, maybe I've seen you there."

"I'm from a small village called Harmonia, it's not far from here."

He thinks for some time, scratching his cheek, which he seems to do when he's lost in thought. "Never heard of it."

"Em, we should go," Persephone says, slowly walking towards us. "We're not supposed to be here."

The boy quickly stands up and bows. "Your majesty," he says respectfully.

Persephone just nods at him before turning to me again. "Em, we have to go, if mother finds us here-"

"Chris, why are you not busy doing your job?" a voice shouts from the far side of the garden. "And what are these two young ladies doing here? You haven't brought your girlfriends her-" The woman belonging to the voice walks towards us but stops when she sees who we are. She bows and says, "Your majesties, you are not supposed to be here. What would your mother say if she sees you here?"

She gets up and walks towards me looking me over before a big grin breaks through her steel face. "It's really you. The crown princess has finally returned!" She practically shouted the last part. Her eyes fall on my dress. "But dear girl, what  _ are _ you wearing? This isn't the right attire for a princess."

Before I can correct the woman, Persephone starts telling her my story while I just stand next to her smiling sheepishly, all the while feeling the boy's eyes on me. As I look in his directing I look right into his eyes, but what I see surprises me. While other people look at me with a mixture of joy and interest, his eyes only show sadness and regret. 

"Who are you?" I ask him, totally shutting Persephone and the woman up, who were in a discussion over my memory loss. "How come I remember you and this place while I don't seem to remember anything else?"

The woman and Persephone send each other meaningful looks but I keep looking at the boy. He seems indecisive, but apparently he makes a decision because he starts talking. "My name is Chris, I'm a servant here. I don't know why you only remember me, I'm just a nobody."

I smile at him. "After a lot of years serving others, I've learned that no one is a nobody. Everyone has a story, so what is yours? What is ours?"

He looks at me with a sudden interest. "If you want to know my story, I'm an orphan, left at the castle door. As for our connection-"

"You don't have to bother the princess with such a story," the woman says, cutting Chris off.

"He isn't bothering me at all and actually, I'd like a moment alone with Chris, if you don't mind."

"Mother won't be happy when she finds out," Persephone says, trying to get me to come with her.

I just smile at her and say, "let me worry about that. I just want a few answers for once, not just more questions and I think Chris can give me some answers." I see the woman looking at Chris with a stern look on her face, silently telling him to keep his mouth shut which makes me angry. "You just said I was indeed the crown princess and as your princess I want you to stop this hiding of the truth. I don't care who tells me the whole truth but I will get it and that is the truth."

The woman looks down, clearly ashamed. "Now, may I please get a moment alone with Chris?" I look at Persephone, trying my best to give her a pleading look. "Please, Seph."

With a sigh she nods and walks away, the woman walking after her, looking over her shoulder at me and Chris.

I wait until they are far away before I start talking. "Before you say anything, I want to tell you about my only memory of this place." I look around me until I find what I'm looking for, a swing set secured to a big oak tree overlooking the whole garden. We make our way to it as I tell him about my dream.

"The last few months the dream came back more often. And it always ends with either the girl or the boy telling me to 'remember it', whatever that means," I conclude. "I always thought that I'd never find those kids. That I could never find out what it was that I have to remember, but when I saw you back there I just knew I found that little boy. So please help me, help me figure out who I was, because if I don't know who I was, how will I know who I am now?" 

Chris seems to think about this. "You won't, I guess," he says, standing up. "I promised to never talk about it ever again, to no one."

"Until I find out who I am, I  _ am _ no one." I grab his arm. "Please Chrissy, I really need your help."

Under my hand I feel Chris's muscles tense. "What did you call me?"

"Ehm, Chrissy, why?"

He turns around too fast, pulling me off of the swing, but catching me before I can hit the ground. I look up into his eyes and am surprised as I see tears in them. "Only Gem called me by that name. You're really her, aren't you?""

"I don't know," I stress, feeling desperate suddenly for no apparent reason. "That's why you have to help me."

He nods. "Ask me anything."

"What's our connection? Why would I remember you while I don't remember anything or anyone else?"

He smiles for the first time. "That's easy, we're best friends."


	12. Chapter 12

I take my time processing what Chris has just told me.

"You mean, we were friends once?" I finally ask, though it sounds more like a whisper.

"What, you don't believe that a girl like you can be friends with a guy like me?" Chris asks me, clearly insulted.

"No, that's not what I mean," I say, sounding calmer than I feel. "I just hadn't thought about the fact that I had friends before I lost my memories. Especially when I found out I was a princess, something I still don't fully believe by the way."

"Wait, so you are like the only one who doesn't believe you're the princess?"

"I'm not the only one," I say quickly. "Madame didn't believe it either."

Chris looks at me with a puzzled look on his face. "Who is Madame?"

I smile. "She's the woman who got me out of the workhouse. She took care of me and I worked for her."

Chris holds up a hand, trying not to laugh. "So you're actually saying that  _ you _ worked as a  _ servant _ ?"

Now, it's my turn to look insulted. "Yeah. Why is that so hard to believe?"

"Because the girl  _ I _ know hates to clean anything."

"Then you don't know me at all," I say, standing up. "I think we're finished."

I start walking away but Chris stops me. "Hey, I'm sorry, I shouldn't have said that."

"You really shouldn't have."

"But," he continues. "Gemma and I were friends for as long as I can remember. We always did everything together and we rarely left each other's side, until-"

Suddenly something pops into my head. _ 'I should have thought about that sooner.' _ "You're that little boy that was with Gemma the day she disappeared, aren't you?" I ask before I can stop myself.

I know the moment I said it that it was a mistake, Chris's smile fades and he suddenly looks very young and weak. "Yeah, that was me. We were playing in the garden like always. I just turned my back for a second and-" a hiccup escapes his throat. "The next thing I remember is people shaking me, asking where Gemma was. I lost my best friend that day, it was the worst day of my life."

"I'm sorry," I say, putting my hand on his shoulder. "I shouldn't have asked. It clearly hurts you." I lift his head so he has to look me in the eye. "I can't change what happened in the past, but I can change what will happen in the future."

Suddenly I find myself in his arms, as he seems to let out all the sadness and frustration he's kept hidden for the last ten years. We stand there, hugging each other for what feels like hours until he pulls back, wiping his eyes. "You should find your sister. She's probably wondering where you are." 

"You're probably right." I start to turn around, but think of something and turn back. "Hey, do you, maybe, want to meet up here tomorrow again. You're the only one so far that just acts normal around me." I smile at him, but he just sends a sad smile back.

"It's probably best if we just stay away from each other. I don't want to get you into trouble."

"I don't care about that. And I can take care of myself, thank you very much."

He smiles that sad smile again. "You're still as tough as ever I see. You're going to need that if you are to survive this place, it can be pretty rough in here, especially if you're not used to it anymore.”

After having said this, he walks away, back to the spot where I saw him first.

"I won't give up this easily!" I yell after him.

He turns back while walking. "I didn't expect you to!" he yells back.

I smile as I walk back into the castle. Inside, I ask the first person I run into where Persephone is.

"This part of the day she's probably in the dining room," the man says, looking me over. "But why would you want to know where the princess is. Now, stop harassing her and start cleaning the late princess's chamber." He bows closer to me. "Word is that some girl acts like she's the missing princess and everyone falls for it. The real princess is long gone, if you ask me. But who would ever listen to old Harrison." The man seems deep in thought so I decide to make a run for it. "Hey, come back here!" I hear him calling after me, but I just keep on running until I arrive at the doors leading to my room. I quickly get inside and sink down on the floor. 

_ 'Are there really people who think I lied my way into the queen's family? Do they really think I  _ want _ to be here?' _

A knock on the door disturbs my thoughts. "Who is there?" I ask in a small voice.

"It's me," I hear a familiar voice say. I wipe my eyes only now discovering I've been crying, and get up.

"Come in," I say, trying to sound stronger than I feel.

Tentatively, Shamus opens the door. "How are ye holdin' up lassie?"

"Hardly," I say, feeling too run down to make up a story.

We walk through the hall and sit down on the bed. "What's th' matter?"

"Apart from people thinking I'm a fraud?"

"Just let th' fowk talk. They don't know anythin'."

"I know but it still hurts."

Let me give ye a hint. If ye want tae survive this world, ye hae tae hae a shield around ye at all times."

"And that works?"

"Most ay th' time."

I smile. "Thanks, Shamus."

He stands up, holding up his hand. "Ah was told tae escort ye tae th' dinin' room. So are ye ready, lassie?"

I take his hand as I get up. "I'm as ready as I'll ever be, I guess."


	13. Chapter 13

Walking to the dining room feels like the scariest thing I've ever done. My knees are buckling and if Shamus wasn't holding me, I know for a fact that I would've fallen down.

"Who is going to be in the dining room?" I ask, only to take my mind off of the fact that we're getting closer to it by the minute.

"Just yer maw an' sister," he assures me.

"No one else?"

"Well only th' servants tae brin' yer dinner, but that's it."

I sigh. "Okay, I can handle that. I can do this."

Shamus smiles down at me. "That's th' spirit."

We walk in silent the rest of the way, but I don't mind. This whole day's been so hectic that I don't mind to take a moment to take in all that's happened. 

Too soon, we reach the dining room. "Ready?" Shamus asks as he reaches to the door handle.

I take a deep breath and force my heart to stop hammering in my chest. "Ready," I say, trying to keep my voice from trembling.

I let go of Shamus as he opens the door and step in. Persephone and the queen are already sitting at the table, having a hushed conversation, but they stop talking the moment I walk in.

"Good to see you've come to join us for diner," the queen says as she points at an empty chair across from Persephone. "Please, sit."

Hesitantly, I sit down, knowing all too well she watches every move I make.

"What do you think of the castle?" the queen asks as I sit down.

"It's larger than I thought it would be. But though it's so big it still feels warm and inviting. It's a contrast I quite like."

"Your sister was supposed to stay with you," the queen continues, giving the evil eye to Persephone who seems to sink down in her seat even more. "I apologize for the fact that she left you all alone."

"It's not so bad," I say, coming to Persephone's defense. "I actually asked her to go away so I could talk to someone."

"Who might this someone be?" 

"He's a servant boy around my age, his name is Chris and he says we used to be best friends," I say quickly as the servants come in with the food. As we hear something clash on the ground we look to the kitchen entrance. There the man stands who I bumped into in the hall only a few moments ago. He looks from me to the queen and back.

"What seems to be the matter?" a familiar voice calls out from behind the man. The woman from the garden walks in swiftly, picking up the plate the man dropped and shoving it in his hands. "Clean this up quickly and tell the chef to make more." The woman turns around and addresses us. "I'm very sorry for the disturbance, your majesties."

"It’s alright," I say quickly, feeling that it's somehow my fault. "It happens. I've done that more times than I care to remember."

Suddenly, the room goes quiet. I look around seeing everyone stare at me. "What did I do?"

"It's not what you did, it's about what you said," Persephone whispers as the woman shoos all the other servants out of the room. 

"What do you mean?"

"Well, you're royalty now and royalty don't ever do the work a servant does."

"But-"

"No buts," the queen interrupts. "For now, let's eat. Tomorrow, we will explain the things you need to know about being a princess."

We eat in silence, it is only when the servants come to gather the plates and the queen has left that Persephone starts talking. "Care to come with me to my room?"

"Sure."

Persephone starts walking but I hold her back. "Shouldn't we thank them for the delicious meal or something?"

"Why would we? They always make food like this, it's nothing special or anything."

Still, I turn around and say, "Would you please give my thanks to the chef for such a delicious meal?"

The servants look at each other, but after some time, they nod and leave the room.

"That was really unnecessary," Persephone says, sounding a bit annoyed.

"I don't get why you would think that. I know from personal experience that it's nice to hear that the food you work so hard on to prepare tastes good."

"We let them know it's good by just eating it instead of sending it back."

After this, we walk in silence. 

_ 'So this is what it's like to work for the royal family, no recognition for the stuff you do whatsoever. I'm really glad I worked for Madame instead. _ '

Lost in my own thought, I don't realize Persephone stopped walking and I walk right into her.

"Sorry," I say quickly.  _ 'Can this day get any worse?' _

"It's okay."

I look at her.  _ 'How can I be her sister and have a normal relationship with her if I don't even know how to act around her?' _

She opens a door, probably leading to her bedroom. This door opens up into a massive room. It has a fireplace, two couches, and a few other doors leading to other rooms.

"Is this  _ your _ room?" I ask amazed.

"Yeah, I know it's not that large but it's good enough, I guess."

"Not that large? It's immense."

She studies me for a moment, looking for a clue that I'm joking, no doubt. When she doesn't find any she just nods. "That's right you're used to tiny rooms now. Sorry I didn't think about that."

I quickly switch to a different topic to talk about. "I think the qu- Mother took the news about Chris really well."

"I guess. But I bet she's not going to stay cool with it for very long."

"Why not? What is it about him that she doesn't like?"

"It's probably because he was with you the day you disappeared and he couldn't stop the people that took you from taking you. That, and the fact that he couldn't remember who took you."

I eye her suspiciously. "I thought you said you didn't know him very well?"

She shrugs. "I don't. That's just something everyone knows around here. He was there and he did nothing."

I start to get angry. How can she not see that what she says is wrong? "First of all, he was just as old as me when I got kidnapped, how could he have helped me, saved me from some grown-up. Second of all, how can she still blame him for what happened? It's not like he did it on purpose. And third of all, why keeping either of us away from him, it's not like being with him increases the risk of getting abducted or anything."

She throws her hands up in defeat. "Easy tiger, don't ask me. I don't make the rules, I just follow them and if you're smart, I suggest you do the same."


	14. Chapter 14

The rest of the evening passes in a blur. We talk for a little longer before I tell Persephone that I'm going to collapse if I don't go to bed. She walks me to my room and as soon as my head touches the pillow, I'm out. 

For the first time in years, I don't have any nightmares and I only wake up as I hear a voice.

"Your majesty, are you awake?"

I grumble internally, but open my eyes. A woman in her mid-twenties stands at my bedside.

I slowly sit up. "I am now. Can you tell me what time it is?"

"Terribly sorry to wake you, my lady, your mother likes a word with you before breakfast. And to answer your question, it's 8:30 AM."

I'm instantly awake. "Is it already that late? I never sleep this long."

"You don't have to worry, my lady, it's still fairly early." She smiles at me. "Let's just get you dressed, shall we."

She leads me into the wardrobe and picks out a beautiful light blue dress.

"It's beautiful," is all I can say.

Putting the dress on was a bit awkward. The woman insisted on helping me to put the dress on, though I could do it myself just fine. In the end, I just stop arguing and let her dress me. The dress fits me perfectly, and its light color suits my skin tone just right.

"Thanks," I say but she holds up a hand.

"We're far from done, my lady. Just follow me." She walks towards a huge mirror with a dresser and chair in front of it and gestures for me to sit down. I sit down and as she works on my hair I start asking questions.

"If I may ask, what's your name?"

"I'm called Jewel, my lady."

"No need to call me that, Jewel. You may call me Em, everyone calls me that."

"I'd rather not, my lady, if it's all the same to you. Your mother wouldn't be pleased if I were to call you by your name. It would be disrespectful."

I look at Jewel through the mirror. "Jewel," She looks at me through the mirror and seeing the look in her eyes, I decide to drop the subject. "Do you have any idea why the- my mother would want a word with me?"

"I'm afraid not, my lady. All I was told was to make you look beautiful, but I don't have to do much for that." She smiles at me through the mirror as she finishes putting my hair into an intricate braid. "Just a few finishing touches and then you're good to go."

She puts a little makeup on my face and lastly she picks up a tiara. It's smaller than the crown Persephone showed me yesterday but it's still a little overwhelming when she puts it on my head.

"Are you sure I can't do without this?" I ask her, pointing at the tiara.

"I was told specifically not to leave the tiara out. Now, off you go, there's a guard outside your door who will take you to your mother," Jewel says as she shoos me out the door.

Walking out the door, I almost bump into a guy standing in front of the entrance with his back to me.

"Pardon me, your majesty," he says quickly, before I have time to speak. "I wasn't paying attention."

"It's alright, neither was I."

"It was totally my fault, your majesty. I should have-" I hold a hand out just like I've seen Jewel do just a few minutes ago.

"Let's just agree this never happened, okay. Because I don't think we are going to agree on who's fault this was." I pause for a moment as the guard nods. "Jewel said you would bring me to my mother, so shall we?"

The guard holds out his arm and I take it. We walk through a labyrinth of halls before arriving at a big door. The guard knocks three times before I hear a voice say, "Come in."

Silently, the guard opens the door for me and announces me before stepping aside. I walk into the room which seems to be a library. Around one of the tables sits a group of people. As I walk closer I see my mother and Persephone sitting with two men. The one sitting next to my mother seems to be in his fifties while the man next to him seems to be twenty at most.

"Gemma," my mother says as she points to the seat between Persephone and the young man. "May I introduce Gregor Eswich, governor of Liragen and its prince, Landon Ethan Richard. Gentlemen, this is my daughter, Gemma Estella Clarissa, princess of Alemea and heir to its throne."

I look at Persephone silently asking her why those men are here. All she does is shrug and turn away.

"I do not wish to sound disrespectful, my queen," prince Landon starts speaking, asking the question that was on my mind the moment I walked into the room. "But why have you invited us?" Even as he says this, his eyes never leave my face, causing me to blush and look away, though I can still feel his gaze.

"Governor Eswich, as you might remember our countries have come to an understanding when Gemma was born," Mother starts.

I get the bad feeling I know what she means by that.

"I certainly do, your majesty," the governor answers.

"When Gemma disappeared many years ago that understanding was jeopardized. Now Gemma has returned to us, I see no reason not to continue on the path we started to walk all those years ago."

The governor smiles, but it's not a sweet smile, it looks more like a cat when it catches a mouse. "Your majesty, I am very happy for you that you have found your daughter and I do not doubt for one moment that this is in fact your daughter, but the king is not that easily persuaded. That is why he sent me to gather the evidence to back up this claim."

Mother smiles a humorless smile. "I would have expected no less of a great king such as him. You are free to ask anything you want."

"So, Miss," he says, turning to me. "What name do you go by these days?"

"Em," I say immediately. "Though some people call me Gemma."

"And how old are you?"

"I will be eighteen in a few months."

"Where is your family?"

This is a tricky question, what should I say? I see Persephone and Mother looking at me, a hopeful look in their eyes. I take a deep breath. "Frankly, I don't know. I don't seem to remember anything up to ten years ago. So I can't be sure, though I do seem to have dreams about this place and recurring images about certain people. I can't tell you for sure if I really am the princess or not, I already told Persephone and the queen that. But they seem quite certain that I am the princess and I'm not one to doubt them."

There is just one more question I'd like to ask," the governor says after a moment of silence. "May I look at your shoulder blade?"

I nod and stand up. He walks towards me and examines my back. As he finds what he's looking for he walks back to his seat and sits down heavily.

"I do believe you are right, your highness. I shall contact the king saying that the missing princess has been found and advise him to further the preparations." He looks at me and prince Landon. "The prince and your daughter will be wed as soon as she comes off age."


	15. Chapter 15

__ _ ‘The prince and your daughter will be wed as soon as she comes off age.' _ These words keep running through my mind as Mother and the governor start to make arrangements.

Seeing that I'm in too much a shock to say anything, prince Landon stands up. "I do not wish to be disrespectful, but I will not marry this girl."

Everyone goes quiet and even my brain stops repeating that one sentence to find out what happens next.

"And why would you not, exactly?" mother asks, a deadly sweetness in her voice.

_ 'Stop talking if you love your life,'  _ I try to warn him but he already starts talking again. 

"Well, your majesty, as she said just a few moments ago, she doesn't remember anything of her life as a princess. She would not be able to learn the skills needed to survive in this world. Also, I do not know the slightest thing about her."

Mother glares at him, her eyes like deadly darts. "Well then, my dear prince-" 

I shake my head trying to clear it. "Mother wait, before you say anything, I have to say something." I look at Landon. "I think prince Landon is right. I am not ready for this kind of life. In fact, I might say I am far from ready. After being a maid for ten years and not knowing anything else, I can say with total confirmation, that I am not qualified to be a princess. And I cannot turn into one in only two months."

The governor and Mother have a small smile on their faces, while they look at each other.

"What did I say this time?" I ask, getting annoyed.

"It is not  _ what _ you said, my dear, it is the way you said it," the governor says. "You sounded just like a real princess, reasonable though stern. You knew exactly what you wanted and you made sure we knew it too. You told us exactly in a way that we could and cannot question. "

"Just like a real princess," Mother chimes in.

"You have got to be kidding me," I say under my breath, looking at Landon with a sorry expression on my face. All he does in return is shake his head and sink down in his seat.

"Now, here is what is going to happen," the governor says. "You kids should get acquainted while the queen and I make some arrangements."

Mother rings a little bell which I hadn't noticed until now and a servant appears.

"Bring prince Landon and princess Gemma to the patio and make sure they get a fine meal."

The servant bows and walks towards us. "Will you please follow me?" she asks with a small voice.

Landon stands up and, clearly struggling, stretches his hand out to me. I take it and let him pull me to my feet. I shoot Persephone a pleading look, but she just shakes her head with an apologetic look in her eyes.

We walk to the patio in awkward silence, so I'm glad when we arrive on a beautiful patio, surrounded by something that reminds me of a park with trees and grass everywhere and a road running through it. I can honestly say that I’ve never seen anything like it before.

"Wow," we both say in unison. I giggle as he quickly looks the other way, but not before I see his cheeks redden.

I thank the servant as she bows and walks away, before turning to Landon.

"Hey," I say, touching his shoulder. He turns around. "I don't think we've been informally introduced yet. I'm Em."

He smiles before extending a hand which I take. He leans forward, kissing the top of my hand. "I'm Landon." 

I blush as I let go of his hand. "Did you know about this 'arrangement'?" 

His smile fades. "When I was little, my father told me about some kind of arrangement but he didn't say what kind. I was foolish enough to think that it didn't have to be a marriage arrangement."

"That's not foolish, it just means that you believed that things don't always have to be one thing. That's what I call innocence."

"That's just another name for foolishness."

"Do you really think that?"

"It's what Father says."

"But what do you think?" I ask, inching closer to him.

"Well, I think… I think that I don't know what I think." He turns around and walks to the table that stands in the middle of the patio, which is being filled with food.

"I guess that's the difference between you and me then." He looks at me with a puzzled look on his face so I continue. "I've had the freedom to make up my own mind on what things mean to me."

"Talking about that, where have you been all these years?"

I think for a second. "If I answer your question you have to answer mine, deal?" I reach out my hand, while sitting down in one of the chairs standing around the table. Without hesitation, Landon takes my hand. "Deal."

So while we eat, I start telling him my story. After having told him, he looks at me with eyes as big as saucers. I just smile. "Now my question, what is it with royals and long names?"

"What do you mean?"

"Well, you and me, we both have three names, but my mother and sister both have only one. Also, no one says a royal's last name while people like the governor do get introduced with a last name. What's that about?"

"Oh that. First of all, only the firstborn get more than one name, the last one usually being their parent's. And about that last name thing, I guess most people don't even remember the last name of most royals. People just expect the first name or names to be enough. That's all I really know."

A silence settles between us but it's a nice silence. Suddenly, Landon breaks it. "You didn't seem very weirded out by the fact that you have to marry a stranger. More by the fact that you have to marry a prince and be a legit princess. Why is that?"

"Well, before I found out I'm a princess, I was already destined to marry a guy I didn't know, so I guess I'm used to the idea."

"Why would a maid not be free to marry a person of her choosing?"

"I didn't leave the workhouse on very good terms. I kinda ran away and they still want me back, so Madame suggested to find me a husband who could take me far away from those people, a man who could keep me safe."

Landon listens with true interest and when I finish talking, he says, "well, I guess that's my job now, if our parents get what they want."


	16. Chapter 16

It's actually pretty nice to talk to Landon, he's very kind and truly interested in life outside the castle walls. We stay together the whole morning, just talking and walking through the castle and its gardens. Together, we explore the garden Persephone showed me yesterday.

"Did you know that this is the only place I can remember?" I ask him. "I mean from before I was kidnapped."

"No I didn't, how is that?"

"Apparently, there was a servant boy with who I was very close. We used to go here almost every day. This is also supposedly the place where I got kidnapped, or so I was told at least."

We sit down at the swing, where I talked to Chris only a day ago, and talk some more. Mostly it's about me, Landon obviously prefers to listen.

After some time, Landon asks, "Is there any other place in the castle that's worth seeing?"

I think for a moment. "Well, I've been meaning to check out the stables. Do you want to go there?"

He nods and smiles. Together, we stand up and start walking back to the door leading to the castle.

"We've been talking about me the whole time," I tell him as we walk past the flowers. "Now, I want to hear about your life." 

As it turns out, Landon is an amazing storyteller. In no time I feel like I am part of his story, not just listening to it. Together, we get back into the castle, talking and laughing about Landon's stories. I'm just laughing about one story, in particular, Landon was telling as I hear someone clear their throat behind us.

"Excuse me, your majesties," a man says as we turn around to face him. "The governor told me to find you and to tell you that you are expected to be at the dining room in half an hour."

_ Is it just me or does that man look familiar? _ I shrug off the weird feeling that comes over me. I've probably seen him yesterday without taking notice of him.

I smile at the man. "Thank you for passing down the message. Will you please tell the governor that we'll be delighted to meet him there?"

"Of course, my lady," the man says as he bows and walks back the way he came.

Landon looks at me with a playful smile on his face. 

"What?" I ask, not able to stop myself from laughing.

"You just act so differently towards the servants. It's really refreshing, that's all."

"Why thank you, good sir," I say laughing, while I curtsy.

"Well, shall we go find the dining room then?" Landon suggests laughing, extending his arm so I can take it.

"Let's go then," I say, lightly taking his arm. "We wouldn't want to be late, now would we?"

We laugh together as we walk through the castle towards the dining room. It takes longer than expected to get to the dining room, probably because we both don't know where anything is in this castle. In the end, we bump into Persephone and she walks with us to the dining room. 

As we reach the dining room, I see Persephone heading in another direction. "Aren't you coming with us?"

"Of course not," she answers as if it’s obvious. "All you are going to talk about in there are all kinds of wedding arrangements and stuff. No way that I'm just going to sit with you looking pretty without having anything to do but listen. You are going to be doing enough of that for both of us." With that, she walks away.

I quickly look at Landon who nods at me with a determined look in his eyes. "Let's do this."

Together we walk in, my hand still clutching his arm. "There you are," Mother says, from her seat at the head of the table. "We were worried you wouldn't come. Especially after we didn't receive any answer from you-" Mother stops talking, while I just look at her, my mind racing.

"But we did tell that servant to tell you we'd be coming. He said he would tell you right away." 

Now, it's Mother's turn to at me like I said something weird. "What are you talking about? The servant we sent for you was a woman."

Landon and I look at each other. "Then who was the man we met?"


	17. Chapter 17

My mind is racing.  _ 'What's going on?' _ The weird feeling I had has come back.

"Are you sure you didn't send a man to fetch us?" I ask Mother, but she just shakes her head.

"Couldn't that female servant have passed on the message to the man we talked to?" Landon asks.

"No," Mother says. "Jewel never passes on personal requests to other servants."

"Wait, Jewel?"

Mother looks at me with a determined look. "Yes, Jewel. This might sound weird to you, but I know most servants by name. I know more than you might think."

"I never said you didn't know anything about your servants or anything, but the question remains who was that man?"

Mother ignores my question and rings the little bell standing on the table. Not soon after, a servant appears.

"Please fetch Mrs. Adams, tell her it's urgent," Mother tells him.

Not soon after, the lady I've met yesterday appears. "You called for me?" The woman, Mrs. Adams, says.

"Have you seen Jewel?" Mother asks. "We told her to deliver a message, but she never did. Do you know what happened?"

Mrs. Adams turns a little whiter. "Actually, I've been looking for her myself, your majesty. She was busy doing some important jobs but she never finished them. I asked the other servants but they all don't remember seeing her."

Mother thinks for a while, before saying, "Then another thing, in the end, the message was delivered, but by a man. Maybe you know who it is."

"I will need a description to know, my lady."

Mother looks at me and Landon. "Do you think you can give a good description?"

I smile at her. "Positive."

The next few minutes, I'm busy trying to describe the man the best I can, Landon sometimes interrupting. After we're done talking the room stays quiet for a while as Mrs. Adams is in deep thought. In the end, she says, "I've personally employed every single person in my staff, but I know of no man who looks like that."

"Are you sure?" Mother asks her.

"I'm one hundred percent sure, your highness."

Suddenly the lights flash out and because the room doesn't have windows everything turns dark. I hear myself screaming. Quickly, I reach out to Landon's hand, only calming down as he grips mine and lightly squeezes it.

That's when it hits me. A _ dark room, I'm the only one there. A small door slowly opens and I hear a voice snarl, "did we have a nice little nap, princess?" I quickly walk over to the door and just before it closes I see a glimpse of a face, the face of a man,  _ the man I saw in the hallway.

As sudden as the lights went out, so sudden the lights turn back on just as a group of guards runs through the door, swords at the ready.

"What's going on in here?" one of the soldiers asks.

Everyone turns to me as I start crying.

"What's the matter?" Landon asks, as he lightly pushes me into a chair.

"I-I rem-remember, I remember why I know th-that guy," I say between hiccups. "He-he's one of the guys who kidnapped me."

"You mean to say that the man who stole my daughter away from me, has come back again?" Mother calls out. "Find that man!" she practically screams at the guards. "Make sure he's brought to justice."

The guards look confused. "But we don't know what this man looks like, my lady," the guard says.

Landon quickly stands up. "I will tell you everything you need to know, just follow me."

All I can do is sit there while everyone else is totally panicked. Surprisingly, I feel completely calm, like some puzzle pieces just fell into place.

I don't notice anything outside my peaceful bubble until a hand grips my arm and pulls me upright.

"Wait what-?"

"Don't worry, my lady. We're going to take you to a safe place until this man is hunted down," a voice says. I look up and stare into the face of a guard. He seems to be in his thirties and has a nice but stern expression on his face. I instantly know that you shouldn't mess with him.

I let him and a group of guards lead me away from the dining room, but not before I pick up a piece of toast with something that looks like jam on it.

"Where are we going?" I ask between bites.

"We're taking you to your room," the guard answers.

"That's the safest place for me?" I ask, my voice drenched in sarcasm.

Suddenly we stop. The guard turns to me. "I'd rather take you somewhere outside the castle grounds, but your mother doesn't want to let you go out there. This is the second-best thing."

I nod. "I put my trust in you." 

"I will not let you down."

We start walking again, sooner than I'd expected we reach my room. I walk towards the door but the guard stops me, nodding to two other guards to go. It takes a minute or two for them to scan through my whole room and the adjoining ones but they come back satisfied.

"What now?" I ask the guard.

"Now? Now, you just stay inside your room and we'll be guarding you from the outside. No one will get past us, I promise."

I send him a sad smile. "Don't make any promises you can't keep. Sooner or later you  _ will _ have to rest."

"And then other guards come and take over. Every hour we will check on you to make sure you are still alright. Everything will be just fine as long as you stay here."

I turn around and go inside my room, closing the door behind me. The rest of the day seems to go by very slowly. When that guard said no one would get past them, he meant it. The only people I see are one or two guards checking up on me. The only time when someone else comes by, it's Mrs. Adams bringing me dinner. I get her to sit with me for a while and to tell me what's happening.

"The guards have been looking through the whole castle trying to find that man and that prince of yours, Landon, he's been helping them, he's probably been doing the most out of all the people searching. I'm telling you from one woman to the other, you could have gotten worse."

I laugh. "Thanks, it feels good to laugh instead of feeling afraid all the time." Before I stop myself I hug her and after only a slight hesitation she hugs me back.

"I know my dear. I know," she says, as she pats my back.

Too soon, she leaves again and because I can't think of anything else to do, I change into a nightgown and undo my braid, before climbing in bed. If it is the excitement or the fright, I don't know, but soon I fall asleep.

I suddenly wake up a few hours later when someone slaps a hand over my mouth. Startled, I open my eyes. There he is again, my kidnapper.


	18. Chapter 18

"Did we have a nice little nap, princess?" The man asks, sarcasm clearly audible.

I look around me, how did he get here? And where are those guards when you need them?

"Don't you try anything, little girl," the man says as he takes some sort of syringe out of his pocket. "This might sting a little."

I feel my heart hammering in my chest, but I force it to settle down. This can't happen, not again.

I start thinking, his knee is pushing down my right hand so I can't use that arm, but my left arm is free to do whatever I want it to. I take a deep breath, make a fist, swing...

And I hit him right in his face. He grunts and falls back far enough for me to shake off his hand and scream for help.

Not a moment later, a whole group of guards comes running into my room. Before anyone can catch him, the man runs through the room and jumps out the window into the night, but not before saying, "until the next time we meet,  _ princess _ ."

A few guards run out of my room while others also jump out of the window trying to catch that guy, but it is no use and I know it. He's gone. Suddenly the castle doesn't feel safe anymore and I have a huge desire to go back to Madame.

One of the guards walks towards me and sits down next to me. 

"Are you okay?" he asks, his voice sounding familiar. Only as the lights are turned on, do I see that it's Landon.

"I think so," I say, not knowing how to react. "How could he have gotten in here? I thought that this room was guarded."

"Sadly, it was. I believe that he dressed up as a guard and used the hourly check-up to get to you."

"First a servant, now a guard. What's next? A nobleman?" I ask sarcastically.

Landon suddenly looks very run down. "I don't know. I guess I'm not that great a protector after all."

I smile. "Are you really doing all this because of something I said to you yesterday?"

"Of course."

I can't do anything else but give him a hug. "Thank you. No one has ever done something like that for me."

"But I failed. If you hadn't screamed-"

I hold up my hand. "Don't go about blaming yourself, none of the guards outside the door would have found out he was in here if I hadn't screamed, it's not just you."

"That's just it, we were here to protect you. What kind of protectors let the person they have to protect you against into their group?"

"The human kind. Landon, making mistakes is what makes us human."

Suddenly, we hear a bang and I have to press my hands against my mouth really hard to keep from screaming.

"It's okay, Em," Landon tries to comfort me. "It's just a door being slammed, relax."

I sit up more and hug my legs, making myself as small as possible. "I think- I think I want to go back home. Back to Madame."

Landon looks at me with a pitiful look in his eyes. "Maybe you should talk to your mother about that."

"No," I say, begging him to understand with my eyes. "She'll never let me go. Please, Landon, this would have never happened if I'd just stayed with Madame. Nothing ever happened there, not in those two years I spent there as a maid. I am only here for two days and already some creep finds his way to me."

"Why don't you go to sleep again? He's not coming back tonight. In the morning we'll talk about this, okay?" Landon says, standing up.

I yawn, even after all this commotion I'm still tired. "Only if you stay. I don't want to be alone."

As the lights go out again and the last guards leave the room, Landon smiles. "I promise, I'll stay."

Happy with his answer, I lay down but I can't go back to sleep, every time I close my eyes I'm back in that dark room. Nowhere to go, no one to be, I can still feel the fear and anxiety from being locked up. In the end, I silently cry myself back to sleep as I feel Landon's watchful eyes on me.

The next morning, I'm a wreck. I don't react when a servant comes to wash and dress me. I don't talk at all as a group of guards led by Landon, leads me to the dining room. Even Persephone doesn't talk to me as we eat together. I feel totally detached from my own body. It's probably the shock getting to me, I tell myself, while I feel Persephone's worried eyes on me. With great effort, I look her in the eye, but she quickly looks away.

_ 'She doesn't even want to look at me.' _

Trying to break the awkward silence between us, I say the first thing that pops into my mind. "You look nice today."

Shocked, Persephone looks up. "Thanks, I guess. You ehm, look nice too."

I smile a sad smile. "I'm pretty sure I look like crap, but thanks anyway."

She laughs but quickly stops. "Sorry," she mumbles before she continues eating.

"For what, Seph? Certainly not for laughing, right?" 

She stops eating again but doesn't say anything and doesn't look at me. "Please look at me," I plead, I've been doing that a lot lately. "I don't want there to be any hard feelings between us. Just talk to me."

Slowly, she looks up to me, her eyes gleaming with unshed tears. "This is all my fault."

I look at her, not knowing what's going on. "What do you mean?"

"If I hadn't said you were my sister, then you'd still be with Madame and Drew and all this wouldn't have happened."

I don't know what to say. "It's not your fault. If you hadn't said anything, I would've never found out about my family. I would have never met Chris and Landon and I wouldn't have such an awesome sister as you." Tears are now stinging my eyes too. "You shouldn't be sorry about that."

"What's going to happen now?" Persephone asks.

This time, I’m the one who looks away. "Even after all the good things that happened, I still think it best if I go back home, back to Madame."

"But Mother-"

"She won't let me, that's why I want you to keep her busy and away from me until I'm gone."

Persephone looks at me, her eyes big as saucers. "I have to go back, Seph. It's just not safe here. Surely, Mother will understand when she has time to think."

"And what about Landon and the arrangement?"

"I don't know, Seph," I say, getting desperate. "We'll figure something out, I know we will, but for now I just want to go back. Back to where I’m safe."

Persephone stands up and walks around the table towards me. She bows down and surprises me by hugging me. "Good luck," she whispers in my ear. "Don't be a stranger, okay."

I smile at her, a real smile this time. "Never."


	19. Chapter 19

I stand up and walk back to my room, surrounded by guards. I just have to pick up a few things before I can go. When I get to my room, Landon walks inside with me. 

"You're really going to do it?" he asks when we're alone. "You're really leaving."

"I don't know what else to do," I say, tears running down my cheeks.

"Stay, of course."

"Then what? Wait until that guy comes back? I just don't feel safe here Landon. I want, no I  _ need _ , to go back. Madame's mansion is the only place where I've ever felt totally safe. I don't belong here, you said it yourself yesterday. I'm better off at Madame's."

"But what about your mother and the arrangement?"

"We'll figure something out and Mother can't reason with the fact that Madame has kept me safe for over two years." I give Landon a hug before I start packing up some things. "It's for the best, Landon, believe me."

Suddenly, someone knocks on the door and a guard comes in.

"Your majesty, a servant boy wants to have a word with you. He says his name is Chris," the man says.

I wipe my eyes. "Let him in."

The man hasn't left yet or Chris already walks into my room. I smile at him. "Hey Chrissy, what's the matter?"

He comes over to me and lightly grabs my arms, looking me up and down. After that, he hugs me tightly. "I heard what happened and I just had to see for myself if you were okay," he says as he lets me go.

"I'm totally fine, really."

Landon takes a step forward. "Is this the boy you told me about yesterday?"

I nod. "Landon, this is Chris. Chris, this is Landon."

Chris stands up straight ready to bow but Landon starts talking. "If you really are her best friend then maybe you can get her to drop that silly idea she has."

"What idea?" Chris asks.

"She wants to go back to her former home. She thinks she's not safe here anymore."

"Then she's right," Chris says, matter-of-factly. "I've heard how that man came in here, and I can tell you that the only way he could've come this far is if he had a source inside the castle, providing him with all the information he needs."

Landon looks at him as if he's nuts. "You mean there's a spy in the castle?"

"You can call it that."

"Now, do you see why I want to get out of here?" I ask Landon, while suddenly the urge of leaving is getting bigger and bigger.

"Okay," Landon reluctantly agrees. "I'll get you out of here,  _ but _ I will come by every day to check on you."

"Are you crazy?" Chris asks. "Do you want everyone to find out where she is? The best thing for her is for us to find that spy ourselves while she's in hiding."

Landon doesn't let go of his plan that easily. "I still think that it's better if someone checks on her every day so that if something happens it could be discovered quickly so we can handle it faster."

"What if, you come by every other day. And maybe not always the same time, that would make things less suspicious, right?" I propose.

"That might work," Landon thinks out loud. "Okay, we'll do it your way. Now, get your stuff, I don't think your sister will be able to keep this a secret to your mother for very long."

Just then a guard walked in. "Your majesties, the queen and governor have asked for you to join them in the library, to discuss the current situation." 

"Tell them we won't be long," Landon says. When the guard leaves, he turns to me and Chris. "Now is our best chance. As long as they think we're coming, they won't know about our plan, but that means we have to move now."

Quickly, we stuff a few of my belongings in a bag before we head to the stables.

"Do you know how to ride a horse?" Landon asks while we're walking.

I laugh. "Please, every time I had some time to myself, I'd get one of Madame's horses and just ride until it was time to get back to the real world."

As we reach the stables, Landon gets the guards to stay outside while he, Chris, and I walk inside. Inside are more horses than I've ever seen before. All of them are black as the night. They almost seem to disappear in the shadows.

"Wow," is all I can say. One horse, in particular, catches my attention. She's a little shorter than the other horses but she seems to radiate strength.

"That's Hope," Chris says. "She used to be yours, until... you know."

"Hey girl," I whisper to the horse. "Will you help me out?" I slowly lead Hope out of her stable and make her ready, while I keep whispering to her.

When I'm ready, I look over to the boys to see that Landon is also readying a horse. "This is Glory. He's Hope's mate. They rarely go anywhere without each other."

"Hope and Glory." I can't help but laugh a little. "There's no glory without hope. They're good names for two horses that don't go without each other."

"Shall we?" Landon asks, climbing on Glory.

"Let's go," I say while climbing on Hope.

We leave through the back door, making sure that no one sees us. Before we go, I turn back to Chris. "You'd better stay low for a while. When they find out we're gone, everyone will turn to you."

Chris smiles up at me. "I've gotten used to it," he says, before jogging away.

I look up at Landon. "Let's avoid the cities. There is a big forest between here and Madame's mansion, it has beautiful paths where we can ride without having to be afraid we might be spotted."

"Lead the way."

We ride the whole morning and afternoon, only arriving at the mansion when the sun starts to set.

"There it is," I say as I see the familiar building.

"So this is where you've been hiding."

I look over my shoulder, with a mischievous smile on my face. "Race you there."

I dig my heels in Hope's thighs urging her to go faster, Landon not far behind me.

As we near the gate he takes the lead and in the end, he wins. 

"What is my price?" he asks, looking victorious.

"You can stay the night," I say, hastily adding "If you want."

Landon takes a look at the sky and says, "it's probably not a good idea to ride back in the dark, I'd probably end up getting lost."

Together we hop off our horses and lead them to the stables. There, I'm almost run over by Drew.

"I didn't know you were coming," he says with a big smile on his face and I can't help but smile back. 

"It was a bit, last minute, that we decided to come," I say, hugging him. "Do you know where Madame is?"

"She's probably in the sunroom having tea. After you left, Madame changed. She fired Margret and Marco and she would have fired me but fortunately, I've been able to keep my job."

I'm shocked. "I didn't know it affected her this bad."

"Anyway, who's this?" Drew asks, looking at Landon.

"Right, Drew, this is Landon. Landon, this is Drew." I can immediately see they don't like each other so I say the only sensible thing I can think of. "Landon, ready to meet Madame?"

Luckily, it works and soon we are at the doors leading to the sunroom. Slowly, I lift my arm and, before I chicken out, I knock.

"Come in."

I open the door and see Madame sitting in a chair. She seems thinner than before and her black hair seems to have more white in it than I remember. "Hello, Madame."

Madame quickly turns around and walks towards me. "Em?"

I smile at her. "Yes, it's me. I’m sorry I haven’t been in touch. It’s been quite hectic at the castle."

She smiles back at me. "You're back, that’s all that matters. We have to celebrate. Come sit with me." It is only then that she sees Landon. "Who might you be, young man?"

"You can call me Landon, Madame. I have heard a lot about you."

"Please sit, sit." Happily, Madame starts pouring tea in two cups. "I made it myself, I hope you like it."

Tentatively, I take a sip. As I'd expected, it tastes too strong, but I still smile and keep drinking. Next to me, I can see Landon doing the same thing.

Suddenly, I feel a sharp pain in the back of my neck. I hear Landon growl next to me. Putting my hand on my neck, I can feel some kind of dart.

_ 'What's going on?' _ is the last thing I think before I pass out.


	20. Chapter 20

I wake up with a huge headache. Reaching up to touch my head, I surprisingly find that I can't.

Slowly, I open my eyes and examine my hands to find that they are bound together and chained to the floor. I try pulling as hard as I can to see how strong the shackles are, but I just end up hurting myself. I look around and realize I'm inside an old farmer’s cart.

"Did we have a nice little nap?" an all too familiar voice asks suddenly.

I tentatively look up and see him again. "Who are you?" 

"Don't you remember?" he asks, clearly mocking me. "Because I remember you just fine."

"Very funny," I say sarcastically. "But seriously, who are you and what do you want from me? You probably don't want ransom otherwise you wouldn't have gone through all the trouble to make me disappear."

He annoys me by laughing at me. "You really are as smart as I've heard. It's a real shame that's all going to be wasted."

"What do you mean?"

"He means to say that where you are going you won't need to think for yourself anymore," someone says from behind the man.

Shocked, the man turns around. "My lady, you shouldn't be here. Let me deal with the girl."

"You have proved yourself unqualified for the task," the voice says, sounding strangely familiar though I can't link a face to it. "I'm here to make sure you don't make any more mistakes. Now move, let me through."

Reluctantly, the man steps to the side, revealing the last person I'd expected to see.

"Madame?" I ask.

She smiles at me, but the smile doesn't reach her eyes. "Good to see everything is the way I left it."

"What do you mean?"

Instead of answering me, Madame turns to the man. "Make sure everything is ready." Madame turns to walk back the way she came, but stops and says, "Also make sure she won't bother anyone," before finally leaving.

The man bows until Madame is gone and turns to me. "You've heard the lady." He walks towards me, grabbing a piece of cloth and a small bottle.

"What's that?" I ask, pulling back from him as far as possible.

"You'll find out soon enough," he says as he drenches the cloth with the liquid from the bottle. He quickly gets behind me and covers my face with the cloth. It smells funny and I try to get it away from me, but he keeps it firmly in place. Soon, I feel myself getting sleepy again and before long I slip into a dreamless sleep.

When I wake up again, I'm lying on a bed, my right hand bound to its wooden frame. I look around me, seeing a big, elegant bedroom. Apart from the bed I'm on, there are a wardrobe and a small desk. Next to me is a small plate of food and only now do I realize how hungry I am. I eat the food without tasting it, thinking of a way to get away from here. 

As I finish the food, the door to the room opens and Madame walks in.

"Are you finished yet?" she asks.

"Where are we?" I ask her in return, ignoring her question. "What's going on?"

"Haven't you figured it out yet? We're going to do what we should have done ten years ago."

It feels like someone has just thrown a bucket of cold water in my face. "What-what's that?"

Instead of answering my question, she goes to the wardrobe and takes out a dress which she lays next to me. "Can you put this on by yourself without running, or do I have to help you?" She snaps.

"If I'm free to use _ both _ my hands I  _ can _ put it on by myself."

"Don't try anything." Mumbling softly to herself, Madame walks over to my side of the bed and undoes the rope that binds me to the bed. Once I'm free, I sit up. "Thanks," I force myself to say.

"Instead of thanking me, you'd better start changing. People are waiting."

I start changing into the dress, which turns out to be a wedding dress. Without giving me time to say or ask anything, Madame ushers me out of the room and through some hallways, into another room.

In front of a garland are two men. One, clearly a priest, is facing me, the other is facing the priest but turns around as soon as we come into the room.

Shocked, I stop walking. The man standing there, wearing a special wedding suit, is governor Eswich.


End file.
